At the back of our church sitting side by side each are two stain glass windows. The one is of St. Matthew the tax collector; the other St. Simon the Zealot. After our module the other week, I couldn’t help but think about how distant these two disciples were from each other (in terms of their politics and social location), and yet despite their differences, they find common ground and something that binds them together being Jesus’ disciples. Ben McBride talked powerfully to us about bridge building between communities of difference. I was thinking how St. Matthew, a tax collector who worked for Rome (was on the payroll of Empire), found himself in close community with St. Simon the Zealot, who was a revolutionary, a freedom fighter, despised Roman occupation of Palestinian lands. I’m sure they had their moments of intense political and philosophical disagreements around the fire at night. How were they able to stay in community together? They are a model to the church and to the world in our divided times of how faith in Jesus can (and should) transform us and bring us into meaningful relationship with folks that we disagree with.
Our parish and our diocese is on a long journey truth-telling and reconciliation with the Indigenous Peoples of the Islands and Inlets we call home. Many in the church are supportive this important work (that will take generations of healing). Others are hostile toward it, or indifferent. As Anglicans and disciples of Christ, we continue to gather at the communion table every week, passing those two stained glass windows of St. Simon and St. Matthew, which testify to the possibility of the building and walking of bridges on this journey of faith.
3 comments
Alastair,
The shared passion–Jesus–allows for all to come to the table, so Matthew and Simon are welcome. In deference and respect to Jesus, I suspect they reordered their thoughts (as we still do to align with Christ), and were challenged by Jesus’ teaching, as we are.
I wish/pray our world had a common passion uniting us and leading us to be One. Somehow, and amazingly, Covid and climate change do not circle the wagons and provide a worthy focus for our shared mission. There are so many possibilities that could bring us together yet we insist on focusing on ME, or MYSELF or MY needs.
My hope is that we could live as Jesus taught, love like he did, and perhaps die to ourselves as an offer to spread good seed.
I think I’d go further with your point about unity here: as people of faith in any higher power, we have common ground that bridges our differences. Every week, I sit amongst a very mixed group: Co-Dependents Anonymous. We are massively diverse yet we are united by two things: faith in the 12 steps and faith in the Higher Power that is most meaningful to each of us. We are governed by conscience meetings, which reflect that diversity of belief, and not by any one principle and have each learned (or are learning) to speak our truth, our values and our beliefs without fear of our differences.
The Higher Powers in which each of us believes vary from a theistic belief in the framework of an established faith, to a theistic but undefined belief, to a non-theistic trust in the universe, in nature, in humanity or in progress, right through to those who can trust only in a Power that is slightly Higher than themselves – the love and innocence of a particular pet, for example. It is rare that conflict breaks out because we are truly multi-partisan and because we each try to seek the nurture and guidance of our particular Higher Power before reacting, remembering that each of us is inadequate and is learning.
Our ‘Communion’ is in sharing what is on our hearts without fear of judgment, without feedback or others trying to advise; our other Sacraments are the reading of the 12 steps and the 12 traditions that govern our time together.
In a Communion as broad as Anglicanism, perhaps there is something to be learned from a bunch of screwed-up people (by this, I mean myself and anyone else who identifies as such… we try not to take anyone else’s inventory): look first to God (as we understand God) for guidance before responding; recognise that we are not in a position of authority but of equality; recognise that we do not have the right to be right but the right to be wrong and to learn from it and learn from those with utterly different perspectives because they are no more wrong than we are.
Thanks for your reply and feedback Franceska. I appreciate what you say about your group in “sharing what’s in our hearts, without fear of judgement” and without the feedback/advice of others. There’s so much here for the church (and myself) to learn from. In the community I recently moved from I used to attend regular healing circles at the local drop-in centre. They were led by elders in the community who helped to create a space of openness and non-judgement. It’s helped to guide my own healing journey and shape my ministry.